[s_wilwerding]

I have a house that was built in 1905, and much of the plaster (especially on the ceilings) is getting pretty rough looking. I do like the "old style" look of the plaster, and I would like to keep some of the charm of the old house - in other words, I don't want everything to look like the interior of a brand new house.

That said, it seems that repairing plaster is a pain. To throw a wrench in the works, it appears that most of the walls in my house are covered with wallpaper, which was then painted. Most of the seams of the wallpaper are showing very prominently through the paint.

I'm toying with the idea of just ripping everything out and putting up drywall. I live in the house by myself, and could go room by room without really impacting my living situation.

Another idea that seems interesting is to put up veneer plaster - you install blue board drywall, but then put a thin coat of plaster over it. It costs a little more than standard drywall work, but it would retain the original look.

Another factor is that the house doesn't have any insulation. If I tore the plaster/lathe out, it would be very easy to put in insulation. Otherwise, I would have to drill holes in the existing plaster, blow in insulation, and patch it. Or I could have the wood siding pulled off the side of the house and have the insulation blown in, but that's no easy job either.

Looking for opinions as to what to do.